A Castle By The Sea
by SSAEmilyHotchner
Summary: Oneshot. Seven year old Jack Hotchner uses a day at the beach to show off his knowledge of building sandcastles - and of the ways of women. Written for MeGkAtHeRiNe's prompt, "Hotch/Prentiss family moment with Jack and another son". PURE FLUFF.


**Author's Note: Looking for something adorable, sexy, and full of fluffy goodness? Then you're in the right place. Shoutout to _MeGkAtHeRiNe_, who was reviewer #100 for 'Kiss The Cook'; without her prompt, this fun family story never would've come to my mind. Anyway, thank you so much to everyone reading; I really appreciate it! Enjoy! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

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><p>"Can we make sandcastles now, Mommy? Pweeease?"<p>

Emily glanced down at the young boy wrapping his short, chubby arms around her legs. With an exaggerated groan, she lifted him up off the ground and into her arms. "You know what, sweetheart? I bet we can. But why don't we wait for Daddy first?"

Little Michael grinned from ear to ear, then proceeded to bury his face into his mother's neck. "Okay. Jack?" He looked around the hotel room for his big brother, an adorably confused expression on his face.

Emily bounced him up and down as she walked over to their room's balcony. "Jack's downstairs with Daddy buying sunscreen because Daddy forgot it at home, remember?"

"Oh." Michael giggled. "Silly Daddy."

"I agree," Emily said with a quick laugh, pressing a kiss to her son's nose.

A beat of tender silence passed before Michael spoke once more. "Look!" he shouted excitedly, pointing to something in the distance.

"Where?" Emily asked, putting a hand above her eyes to shade away the sunlight. "What am I looking at, Mikey?"

The boy squirmed, impatient with excitement. "A boat!"

However, it wasn't Emily who answered next. "That's not just any boat, Michael; that's a cruise ship."

Emily spun around at the low voice coming behind her. Instantly, her lips curved into a pretty smile. "Hey, handsome."

Michael squealed. "Daddy!"

Hotch stepped out on the balcony, Jack meandering somewhere behind him. "Hey there, buddy," he greeted, taking the three year old from Emily's arms. Without missing a beat, he leaned back in to give Emily a kiss. "Hey, beautiful," he murmured against her lips. "I missed you."

She chuckled. "You were only gone for about ten minutes."

"Yes, but still." He grinned as Jack came bounding up to them. "This one missed you, too."

"Uh huh," Jack agreed, nodding happily.

Emily ran her fingers through Jack's gorgeous golden blonde hair. "Well, shucks. I'm flattered," she crooned sweetly.

In his father's arms now, Michael turned to face Emily, his brown eyes curiously wide. "Mommy?"

"Yes, baby?"

Michael looked back at Hotch. "Sandcastles?" he asked once more.

That piqued Jack's interest. "Ooooh, yeah!" he exclaimed, practically thrumming with enthusiasm. "Can we, Daddy, can we?"

Hotch shared a smile with his sons. "Sandcastles, huh? You two want to make a really, _really_ big one?"

"Yeah!" Michael flapped his arms excitedly. "A _big_ one!" he echoed, as Hotch placed him by his brother.

"No, Mikey; the biggest!" Jack amended, grinning.

"Then go and get your swim trunks," Hotch said in means of an answer, his eyes shining.

It took a good minute for the boys to realize their answer was a 'yes'; but when they did, they dashed back into the room and began to dig through their belongings.

Emily moaned a little, then laughed when Hotch outstretched his arms, inviting her in for a warm hug. "I'm already exhausted," she said playfully, allowing him to capture her lips in a slow, languid kiss. "Those two wear me out."

"Tell me about it," Hotch sympathized, cocking his head toward the sight of Jack and Michael traipsing around, making a mess. "I don't think I was ever that energetic."

"At least we get to relax at the beach," Emily said. "Right? I mean, the sun, the soft white sand, the warm summer breeze…"

"At least I get to see my gorgeous wife in a bikini," Hotch added, an almost naughty grin on his face.

But Emily snorted at that. "Who said anything about a bikini?" she teased, leading him back into the room. Moving to the closet, she pulled a sleek and sexy black one-piece off the hanger and waved it in front of his face. "I didn't bring a bikini, Aaron."

Hotch actually looked _hurt_. "I…you…what?" His mouth fell open in shock. "But what about the one I helped you pick out the other day? The red one, I mean. With the white polka dots."

"You don't think that would be too revealing for me to wear in front of the boys?"

"No; besides, you brought a sarong, didn't you?" Hotch paused, rewinding. "_Wait_…does that mean you _did_ bring the bikini?" he asked, unabashedly hopeful.

Emily simply smiled.

Hotch growled. "You minx." Without another word, he caught her sides and tickled her until she was screaming with laughter and on her knees.

"Tickle fight!" Jack yelled gleefully, joining in on the fun.

Michael giggled once more, even more raucously this time. "Tickle, tickle, tickle!"

Pulling Michael down to the ground and onto her chest as she rolled out of Jack's and Hotch's grasps, Emily struggled to catch her breath. "Okay, okay! I give up; you all win," she conceded.

Jack proudly high-fived his father. "We won, Daddy! Wait…what do we win?"

"A super fun day at the beach, of course," Hotch said obviously. "With sunscreen," he added, holding up the bottle he had just bought. However, it was already open. "Jack, did you -"

The seven year old nodded, then affectionately tugged Michael to his side. The latter spoke up cheerily. "Jack gave me some sunsween alweady, Daddy."

Emily leaned over to give Jack a kiss on his soft cheek. "That's very sweet of you, Jack. You're a very responsible older brother," she praised, making the young boy blush a little. "Mikey, baby, did you say thank you?"

"Thank you, Jack," Michael answered, his arms coming to wrap around Jack's waist. Both Emily and Hotch felt their hearts skip a little beat at the sweet sight.

Jack smiled, then turned to his parents. "Can we go now?" he asked impatiently, practically itching for the fun the sun and surf would undoubtedly provide.

"Just give your mom and me a second, buddy; we need to go change really quickly."

"But…you're already in your swim trunks, Daddy."

"Yeah, Daddy," Emily teased, her voice sultry.

"Well, maybe your mom needs help getting in that bikini of hers. Besides, she needs sunscreen, too," Hotch said smoothly.

Emily smirked. "You just want me naked, don't you?" she asked, her voice loud enough for only Hotch to hear.

He shot her a wink. "Let's just say I have an itch that needs scratching."

"Oh, good." Their smoldering gazes met. "So do I."

~.~.~

"I bet you can't catch me!"

Emily arched an eyebrow playfully. "Oh, really?" she challenged.

"Uh huh!" And at that, Jack shot off down the beach, the ocean his intended destination. Emily was quick on her feet, however; she let Jack take the lead, but in less than a minute, he was on his back in the sand, giggling frantically.

"I think I won this time," she said smugly, grinning as Hotch approached them, Michael situated high atop his shoulders.

Jack reached for the bright red and yellow pail and shovel set in his father's grasp. Sitting by the water, where the sand was ideal for construction, he beckoned his younger brother over.

Michael plopped himself down in the cool sand. "Gimme!" he ordered, reaching for the pail.

"You know how to make a sandcastle?"

"Uh huh." Without further ado, Michael filled the pail with small fistfuls of sand and turned it over in order to make one of the castle's towers. However, when he pulled the pail away, his makeshift tower quickly fell apart. Michael's bottom lip trembled slightly. "But...but..."

Gently, Jack took hold of Michael's hand. "There's a trick to it," he informed. "I didn't know this until maybe...last year, so it's really special that you're going to learn it now," Jack soothed. "The trick is this: the sand you use needs to be kinda wet. Not _too_ wet, but not too dry, either. It's kinda complicated, but I'll help you."

Michael looked up at Jack almost reverently. "You will?"

"Oh, yeah," Jack smiled. "See, this sand right here is really good. I'll let you fill the pail." Slowly but surely, Michael did just that. "Now, you have to turn the pail over really carefully...yeah, like that!" he exclaimed encouragingly. "Good job!"

"Can I pull it away now?"

"Not yet," Jack advised. "Just a little while longer, so the castle tower will be really strong."

"How about now?"

Jack giggled. "Nope, not yet." He glanced over at Hotch and Emily, who had silently been watching the scene before them unfold. "Right? It has to be upside-down for one more minute?"

Hotch nodded. "You've got it right, Professor Jack. Congratulations."

Once again, Jack let out an endearing little laugh. "Thanks, Daddy."

_"Now?"_ Michael asked.

"Yeah, go ahead!" Jack said excitedly. Together, they pulled the pail away...

...and there, in its place, was the most perfect sandcastle tower ever created.

Michael gasped, his little face beaming with happiness. "We did it!" he cried.

"No, _you_ did it," Jack said sweetly. "So now, we can make some more towers or decorate this one. Whataya want to do, Mikey?"

"Both!" Michael looked to his mother for confirmation. "Can we?"

"Of course," Emily smiled. "We have all day."

Jack bounced up and down at that wonderful news. "Let's make more towers, and Mommy and Daddy can go find shells to use for decorating our castle. Okay?"

Michael clapped his hands. "Okay!"

Hotch chuckled. "I guess we have a job to do, Em."

"I think you're right." Rising to their feet, they glanced down at their two boys. "Do you want any specific type of shell, Mr. Jack?"

"Any kind is fine; they're all pretty."

"That's very true." Emily cocked her head to the side. "Your father and I are going to be just over here," she said, motioning to a spot on the shoreline, a mere ten, fifteen feet away. "Don't go anywhere."

"We won't," both boys chimed angelically.

Hotch let a handsome smile curve his lips; and then, when Emily had turned away and wasn't paying attention, he ran over and lifted her into his arms. She was about to let out a squeal of protest when, suddenly...

...she was thrown into the ocean.

Emily came up to the surface sputtering. A beautifully menacing expression flirted across her features. "Aaron Hotchner, I swear I will -"

He cut her off with a searing kiss.

Her mind effectively wiped blank, Emily pulled back only slightly, her heart beating wildly. _After all these years_, she thought fondly_, he can still make me feel like a teenager. _Unable to think of anything snappy to say, she let him kiss her once more.

Jack, however, was put off. "Ewwww," he groaned loudly enough for both Hotch and Emily to hear, stealing Michael's attention away from their three-towered castle. "Kissing is gross," he informed the three year old, raising his voice over his parents' resulting laughter.

"Why?" Michael queried curiously.

"Because! Girls have _cooties_," Jack said, lowering his voice. "Do you know what cooties are?" Little Michael shook his head. "Well, they're girl germs and they're contagious."

"Does Mommy have cooties?"

Jack glanced back at Emily, who was gleefully splashing water in Hotch's face. "No, she doesn't. But still...kissing is weird."

"Mommy gives me kisses," Michael pointed out.

"_That's_ different."

"Oh." There was a pause. "Mommy and Daddy are silly."

That made Jack grin. "They are," he agreed. _"And they're supposed to be getting seashells!"_ Jack yelled in reminder.

_"Yeah! Seashells!"_

Hotch and Emily broke apart reluctantly. "Looks like Prince Jack has spoken," Hotch teased, causing Emily to laugh brightly.

"Don't forget about Prince Michael. Though, it's a shame," Emily said in return, her smile suggestive. "You were getting me all riled up."

Hotch moaned a little. "But when we get back to the hotel room..."

"You have _another_ itch that needs scratching?" Emily asked, feigning incredulity. "You must be one itchy, itchy man," she quipped.

Hotch gave her one last kiss. "Oh, baby...you have no idea."

**THE END.**

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong><strong>Was that sweet enough for you? I sure hope so. :) Please leave me a review telling me what you thought; I <em>love<em> hearing from you, and I appreciate and treasure every single review I get, no matter the length. No account needed!******


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